Myalgic Encephalomyelitis or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) is something of a family "tradition". Besides myself, both my mother and sister are also long-term survivors of this devastating illness.

We have all tried countless treatments and therapies over the years, some have helped, most have not. Both my mother and sister however have been treated using The Perrin Technique and seen positive results. My mother tries to see her specially trained osteopath regularly for the treatment or she sees a noticeable downturn in her condition. My sister got married in the summer of 2009 and says regular Perrin Technique treatments leading up to the big day definitely helped her get through it.

Comment (0) Read More...

After the initial bewilderment and panic of becoming sensitive to what were previously harmless everyday items and environments, everyone who suffers from multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS) quickly realises that there is yet more suffering in store for them. Firstly, their regular doctor is unlikely to take the condition seriously or diagnose it correctly, instead opting for a psychiatric diagnosis. Secondly, no treatment actually targetted at MCS is likely to be forthcoming.

Even when naturopathic doctors and other alternative practitioners who do recognise MCS for what it is are consulted, the treatments on offer are often expensive and only partially successful at best.

Comment (5) Read More...

Let's face it - New Year's resolutions are hard to keep at the best of times. We all confidently list the vices we'll give up or positive life changes we'll make over the coming year with the best of intentions and (in most cases) a genuine desire to follow through. But I think most people will agree that after the rosy tint of the holiday season has worn off it becomes hard to stick to most resolutions. Throw invisible illnesses into the mix and things get a whole lot more problematic!

For example, it's hard to shed any extra pounds you feel you might have when walking from the bedroom to the bathroom requires you to summon all the strength and energy you have. A new calorie burning exercise regime then is out of the question.

Comment (0) Read More...

This week the online medical journal BMJ Open published a study whose findings re-opened old wounds and caused me great dismay. The study looked at every pupil between the ages of 11 and 16 at three high schools in England and revealed that 1% of the total student population had myalgic encephalomyelitis / chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). The researchers also reported that the illness accounted for more than 6% of pupils who were missing large amounts of school.

Comment (0) Read More...

As someone who has suffered from chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) for over two decades from the young age of 11 I have come to see that we need to use every tool at our disposal to help us manage chronic illness and live life to its fullest. Starting around 10 years ago a began flirting with various forms of meditation and eventually settled into regular practice of a form of meditative practice that involves the repetitive chanting of a mantra (word or phrase). Whether the mantra itself is important is up for debate as it seems to me at least that the rhythm of the chanting is the important aspect, leading the brain into a state of syncronisation, focus, and relaxation.

What I know for certain is that my practise of mantra meditation has empowered me to build and maintain The Environmental Illness Resource website, obtain a bachelor's degree in nutritional medicine, and enjoy a social life I had lost years earlier. I still have my limitations due to chronic fatigue syndrome but I am certain without my meditation practice I would not have achieved what I have. Meditation not only elevates mood, energy levels and motivation, it has the potential to change our entire outlook on life and the way we experience it...at least that has been my experience.

Comment (2) Read More...

Thanks to my younger sister Lindsay, who like me is a long-term chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) survivior, for pointing me in the direction of GcMAF; I am so busy with this website and other things at the moment that my time and energy reserves aren't stretching to as much research and general Googling as they did previously! Anyway, I have now taken a look at some information on GcMAF and feel it is worth sharing with fellow patients.

Comment (1) Read More...

For those who have not come across Re|shelter before it is s a non-profit, charitable 501(c)3 organization founded to address the urgent need for housing alternatives for people with environmental illnesses such as multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS), sick building syndrome (SBS), and electrical sensitivity (ES).

Co-founders Julie Genser and Julie Laffin have made it their mission to address the current housing crisis and high rates of homelessness and suicide within vulnerable populations affected by disabling environmental sensitivities.

Comment (0) Read More...

The mainstream media this week have been reporting on events that effectively put the final nail in the coffin of the purported association between the XMRV retrovirus and myalgic encephalomyelitis / chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). Here in the UK the BBC ran a major article in the health section of their hugely popular website titled Virus link to ME called into question (read here).

Those of you keeping track of the XMRV story will remember that in May of this year following multiple studies failing to replicate the original findings of the Whittemore Peterson Institute (WPI) including investigations led by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) aand Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) the journal Science, which published the original WPI study back in 2009, issued an editorial "expression of concern" over the validity of those original findings. Such a move is a rarity in the world of medical journals.

Comment (0) Read More...

Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS) is estimated to affect up to 15% of the population in the US and other industrialised nations (1), yet research into why people develop this hypersensitivity to chemicals is sorely lacking. Currently we have mainly animal testing and studies involving small numbers of participants diagnosed with MCS to go on.

One leading theory suggests the development of a hypersensitivity to chemical stimuli in an area of the brain known as the limbic system which controls a variety of functions including emotion, behaviour, long term memory, and olfaction (our sense of smell). Animals studies have shown that both large acute exposures and low-level chronic exposures to certain organic chemicals can result in hypersensitivity of the limbic system to subsequent minute exposures to the same, or similar chemicals (2). Perhaps the most complete theory of the pathophysiology of MCS thus far has been proposed by Martin Pall, Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry and Basic Medical Sciences at Washington State University. Pall believes the symptoms are the result of a trigger (primarily chemical exposures) that results in the body getting locked into a cycle involving elevated levels of nitric oxide, increased free radical production (oxidative stress), chronic inflammation, and again, excessive sensitivity of the brain and central nervous system to "normal" stimuli (mediated by the NMDA receptor) (3).

What all current biomedical research points to is that excessive exposures to chemicals that exceed the the body's detoxification capacity, may result in the development of MCS in susceptible individuals. This is true whether the exposure is acute and obvious or is more insidious, occuring at a low-level over a prolonged period of time.

For some who develop MCS it is obvious what initially caused their illness. Acute exposure to such things as organophosphate/organochlorine pesticides, formaldehyde, or various powerful industrial solvents are obvious examples.

Comment (4) Read More...

Suffering with environmental illness is a huge struggle, not only in terms of dealing with the dibilitating symptoms themselves but also the lack of healthcare provision and the way we are regarding with suspicion by doctors and even our friends and family. Finding ourselves in this situation though does have its up side...it has a way of opening our minds to possibilities we may not otherwise have considered.

Comment (0) Read More...